Here are five things you need to know about crime in Westchester County. Video by Jordan Fenster/lohud Wochit

A 24-year-old New York City Uber driver is accused of attacking a woman while he was driving her to her Westchester home.

The woman hired Harbir Parmar to drive her from Manhattan to White Plains on Feb. 21, prosecutors said. ...During the ride, the victim fell asleep, and Parmar changed Uber's mobile application to an address in Boston and drove toward Massachusetts, prosecutors said.

When she woke up, prosecutors said Parmar's car was on the side of the road and he was allegedly in the backseat with his hand under her shirt, prosecutors said.

After she woke up, Parmar went back to the driver's seat and drove her to Branford, Connecticut and left her on the side of Interstate 95, prosecutors said. She went to a nearby convenience store where she called for help.

Parmar is facing federal charges of kidnapping and wire fraud.

“As alleged, Harbir Parmar was hired to transport a woman from Manhattan to her home in White Plains," U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said in a statement. "Instead, Parmar kidnapped, terrorized and assaulted the woman before dumping her on the side of an interstate. No one – man or woman – should fear such an attack when they simply hire a car service.”

In addition to the alleged February incident, Parmar sent false information about the destinations of the Uber's customers through its mobile application on at least 11 occasions between December 2016 through February 2018, prosecutors said.

He also sent false information about the application of a cleaning fee to be applied to the Uber's accounts on at least three occasions, and customers filed complaints with Uber about being overcharged for their rides, prosecutors said.

These instances have resulted in over $3,600 in improper charges.

The kidnapping charge carries a maximum sentence of life in prison, and the wire fraud charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Updated: 7:09 PM CDT Mar 16, 2018

An Uber driver is accused of sexually assaulting a woman he drove home from a bar in Milwaukee.

The woman said he picked her up on Old World Third Street and then followed her into her house.

At bar time, the 23-year-old woman knew she couldn't drive home because she'd had too much to drink and took an Uber.

Police said the 39-year-old Uber driver helped her to the door of her Bay View home and then followed her inside and sexually assaulted her twice.

"Whenever you're out, you need to have good judgment," said Katie Wilhelm, who uses Uber. "It's a difficult call to make because either way there's a risk. Like, you don't want to drive drunk, but you also don't want to put yourself in a situation where you could be really at risk of being hurt in a different way."

Uber records led police to the driver, who didn't answer his door when WISN 12 News tried to talk to him Friday afternoon.

Uber users say the case serves as a warning, and a reminder that revelers should make sure their intoxicated friends get home safe not just into a cab or an Uber.

"That's a big problem out here with the Uber situation ... a lot of times, people get drunk. They leave their friends. And they end up out here, in the river, or get taken advantage of," Uber user LaTangelia Johnson said.

Police arrested the driver, but WISN 12 News is not naming him because he hasn't been charged yet. Prosecutors are waiting for DNA test results.

Uber released a statement saying, "What's been reported is horrible and is not tolerated on the app. As soon as we became aware of this we removed the driver's access."

Police arrested 37-year-old Cristian Zelada-Avalo, of Manassas, in connection with the sexual assault of a 22-year-old Uber passenger. (Prince William County Police)

Police say a 22-year-old woman was pinned down and sexually assaulted in an Uber Saturday after hailing a ride from Manassas, Va., to her home in Woodbridge, Va.

Prince William County police identified the driver as Cristian Yovani Zelada-Avalo, 37, and arrested him Tuesday on charges of object sexual penetration and abduction with intent to defile.

According to police, Zelada-Avalo picked up the woman at 3:15 a.m. Saturday after she requested a ride home through the app. At some point during the trip, police said, Zelada-Avalo “held the victim down” and sexually assaulted her.

The woman text messaged an acquaintance to meet her at home when she arrived in Woodbridge.

“When the victim arrived at her home, she was able to get away from the accused who then left the area,” police said.

Police identified Zelada-Avalo in the ensuing days and found him at his home near Ginny Way and Shannon Lane in a Manassas subdivision. He was arrested Tuesday, charged and held without bond, police said.

An Uber spokesman said Zelada-Avalo had been driving for the app for eight months.

MIDDLETOWN, RI—A Providence man was charged with Simple Assault or Battery on Sunday at 2:05 a.m. after he allegedly grabbed a woman in his car and started kissing her. The woman told police she had called Uber and arranged to be picked up at 41 North restaurant in Newport. She got into the front passenger seat, and the driver, Richard Jimenez, "began to hit on her," she told police. He allegedly told her she was pretty and asked for her telephone number. When they arrived at her street, she asked him to pull over so she could leave. He pulled her head toward him and started kissing her, she said. She protested and managed to get away. Fearful he would see where she lived, she walked into an apartment building a couple of doors away from her home and called her boyfriend. He called police.

Middletown police investigated and then stopped Jimenez, 32, on Lawrence Street. He denied dropping off anyone there and said he was just driving around. Later, he said he had dropped off a passenger. Police asked the woman to identify the suspect, and she confirmed he was the driver.

LONDON — Uber’s license to operate in London won’t be renewed because its practices endanger public safety and security, the local regulator said Friday, in a blow to a company already facing big questions over its corporate culture.

Transport for London says the company, whose app is used by 3.5 million passengers and 40,000 drivers in London, isn’t “fit and proper” to hold a license to operate a private-hire vehicle service.

“TfL considers that Uber’s approach and conduct demonstrate a lack of corporate responsibility in relation to a number of issues which have potential public safety and security implications,” the regulator said in a statement.

Uber was first licensed to operate in the city in 2012 and will see its current license expire on Sept. 30. The company said it plans to appeal the regulator’s decision, and can continue to operate until the appeals process is exhausted.

For its part, Uber accused the city of caving in to special interests “who want to restrict consumer choice.”

“Uber operates in more than 600 cities around the world, including more than 40 towns and cities here in the U.K.,” the company said. “This ban would show the world that, far from being open, London is closed to innovative companies who bring choice to consumers.”

Uber, founded in 2010 in San Francisco, has often faced opposition as it expanded. Taxi drivers complain that Uber drivers don’t have to comply with the same licensing standards, giving the ride-hailing service an unfair advantage and placing the public at risk.

The company, which provides a smartphone application that connects passengers with drivers who work as independent contractors, argues it isn’t a traditional transportation company.

In its decision, Transport for London singled out Uber’s approach to reporting serious criminal offenses and how it conducts background checks on drivers. TfL also took issue with Uber’s explanation of software that could be used to block regulators from gaining full access to the app and “prevent officials from undertaking regulatory or law enforcement duties.”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he supported the decision, saying any operator of taxi services in the city “needs to play by the rules.”

“Providing an innovative service must not be at the expense of customer safety and security,” he said. “I fully support TfL’s decision — it would be wrong if TfL continued to license Uber if there is any way that this could pose a threat to Londoners’ safety and security.”

Police in London accused Uber last month of not reporting a sexual assault by a driver on a passenger, allowing the driver to strike again. Metropolitan Police Inspector Neil Billany suggested in a letter that the company was putting concerns for its reputation over public safety.

At the time, Uber said it was surprised by the letter and that it had a good working relationship with the police.

But the company has been dogged by questions on its workplace culture. In July, former CEO Travis Kalanick resigned following criticism of his management style. Some 20 people, including some managers, were fired in June amid allegations of sexual harassment and bullying.

Its aggressive corporate culture has resulted in litigation around the world. John Colley, a strategy professor at Warwick Business School, said poor values ultimately bring companies down. Uber is now effectively banned from France, Spain and Belgium, and it is facing litigation and investigations around the world, he said.

“There is a very long list of businesses who have suffered for failing to uphold the level of values necessary,” Colley said. “Until Uber gets this message then it will suffer lost trade as a result of its deteriorating reputation.”

Uber, whose corporate culture has come under intense public and legal scrutiny this year, could not be reached for comment after business hours Monday.

Conner’s 13-page lawsuit is short on specifics, aside from the frightening ride she says happened “(w)ithin the year last past,” with an Uber “driver defendant” in the city of Ventura.

She says when the Uber driver picked her up he headed in the wrong direction. When she complained he told her “in essence, that he was taking a shortcut, according to the complaint. When it became clear he was not taking her where she wanted to go, Conner says, she told him she wanted to get out of the car.

“At that point, the driver defendant became agitated and started driving fast,” making her “fear that the driver defendant intended to take her somewhere other than the destination and do her harm.”

She screamed at him, insisting that he let her out, Conner says, but he ignored her pleas to let her out of the car, “and, in fact, increased its speed in response and began shoving, pushing and assaulting and battering (her).”

The assault culminated, she says, “as the driver defendant was making a turn, and while the vehicle was still moving, the driver defendant reached over, opened the passenger-side door, forcibly pushed plaintiff Conner out of the subject vehicle and drove away.”

She had to go to a hospital emergency room and get continuing treatment for physical and psychological trauma, Conner says.

She is represented by Lewis Adelson with Costell & Cornelius, of Santa Monica.

Uber has been sued at least 433 times this year, according to the Courthouse News database, on claims of negligence, failure to train, exaggerating the background checks it claims to do on its drivers, many injury accidents, including an alleged death caused by an Uber driver using his mobile phone while driving, and class actions about its treatment of drivers, including failing to secure workers’ compensation insurance for them, and failing to serve disabled passengers. Its CEO Travis Kalanick stepped down after repeated complaints about an abusive workplace and a major shareholder recently sued the company to get Kalanick booted from the board.

They had a dispute over the route the driver was taking. Diaz pulled over at the Quick Pick Foods store at 800 58th St. N. in St. Petersburg, where they had a physical altercation.

Authorities say the driver punched Kimball, and he did not regain consciousness.

"I saw this guy laying on the ground. This woman was pressing on his chest trying to bring him back," Carlton Reid said. "He wasn't responsive. It was pretty tough, really I was really scared, I didn't know what was going on with him and I was pretty worried."

Reid witnessed the aftermath of the fight.

He is now in the hospital with serious brain trauma and life-threatening injuries.

Police said a witness told them Kimball appeared to be the aggressor. A friend of Diaz told ABC Action News reporter Michael Paluska he has a baby on the way and is not a violent person.

According to Pinellas County court records Kimball's been arrested multiple times for crimes that include DUI, simple battery, resisting arrest, and disorderly intoxication.

"That's very sad it really is I would like to know what happened now, truly," Reid said.

Investigators are speaking with witnesses and they say Diaz, who has not been charged at this time, is cooperating.

SUN-TIMES MEDIA WIRE - A lawsuit filed Thursday in Cook County Circuit Court accuses an Uber driver of using the company’s app to find a passenger’s home address so that he could wait for him to get home and attack him.

The suit was filed by David Riordan, who said he requested an Uber to take him home about 2 a.m. Dec. 18, 2016 after leaving a party, according to court documents.

When Uber driver Muntsr Abuseini arrived at the intersection of Damen and Division in the Wicker Park neighborhood to pick him up, Riordan said Abuseini became aggressive toward him and kicked him out of the car, according to the suit. Abuseini then got out of the car and punched Riordan in the face and tackled him.

Riordan went to a friend’s home afterwards and reported the incident to Uber about 2:30 a.m. He then called another Uber to take him home, according to the suit. When he got to his home in Logan Square, Abuseini attacked him from behind and hit him in the head with a metal baton.

According to the suit, Abuseini told Riordan “Don’t f— with Uber drivers,” during the attack.

Abuseini was arrested Jan. 23 in Lake View and subsequently charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, according to Chicago Police.

His bail was was set at $75,000 and he was released from Cook County Jail after posting bond, according to court records. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The suit accuses Abuseini of battery, assault and causing Riordan emotional distress during the attack. It also accuses Uber of negligently hiring and supervising Abuseini.

Uber declined to comment on the suit, but a spokeswoman said Abuseini’s “access to the driver app was removed after this incident.”

After a meal with her boyfriend and drinks at a leaving party, the 26-year-old office worker called it a night. It was only 10.30pm, but she had to be in work early the next day so, using her smartphone, she summoned a cab via the Uber app. It was a decision she would live to regret.

Her driver, an Eritrean refugee who had been working for Uber for only three weeks, quickly made her feel uneasy.

‘You are very pretty,’ said Samson Haile, 32. He then asked if she had a boyfriend, before announcing: ‘I want to have sex with you.’

Next, he grabbed her leg, moving his hand up her thigh. Terrified, the woman screamed and jumped out of the Toyota Prius, fleeing into the London night.

Hours later, Haile was at it again, telling a female passenger: ‘I want to sleep in your bed.’ As luck would have it, she was an undercover policewoman and Haile would subsequently be arrested and linked to the first attack.

Some might dismiss it as a relatively minor incident, but its impact would be immense.

‘I have suffered from repeated flashbacks relating to the incident,’ the victim revealed in a statement read out in court in 2015, when Haile was jailed for eight months.

‘I feel helpless, isolated and vulnerable, and the incident has made me lonely. I now don’t like being in a vehicle with a man I don’t know. I had to move since the cab journey because I was so worried the man knew where I lived. I am haunted by the “what if?” scenarios.’

Earlier this month, a different court was hearing another case involving an Uber driver. This time, Jahir Hussain was jailed for 12 years for attacks on three separate women in London. He groped two and raped the third, cutting off their underwear with a knife after they fell asleep in the back of his cab.

A spokesman said Uber’s thoughts were with the victims, but added: ‘While these attacks did not take place on a trip booked through our app, we were still able to support the police in bringing this man to justice.’

Little wonder there are growing concerns that Uber’s aggressive expansion could be jeopardising passenger safety. MPs and unions are warning that new drivers are exploiting legislative loopholes to sidestep measures intended to safeguard the public, such as installing CCTV cameras in the back of cabs.

Questions have also been raised about whether pressure on Uber drivers to maximise their earnings is leading to them lending their vehicles to other drivers — so passengers have no idea who may be driving them home late at night.

Some will see such criticisms as sour grapes, whipped up by those who lost out after the Californian company launched its services in London in 2012.

The firm runs a smartphone app that allows users to hail a minicab at the tap of a screen using location software in the passenger and driver’s phones.

An Uber driver accused of raping a Queensland high school student has been granted bail despite evidence placing him at the scene of the crime.The 37-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had been in custody since he was charged earlier this month with raping a 16-year-old passenger.The girl was returning to a friend's home after buying a tub of ice cream when she was allegedly picked up by the man about 9pm on July 7.

Two friends had offered to go with the girl on the return trip to the supermarket but she told them: 'It's alright, I'll be 10 minutes max'.

Police allege the man drove in the direction of the girl's destination before terminating the trip and taking her to a 'dark, spare allotment'.

'I have just broken up with my girlfriend today and I am feeling horny,' he allegedly said.

'But I think you can fix my problem'.

The man then allegedly indecently touched, raped and sexually assaulted the girl as she cried and repeatedly told him no.

'It's alright baby girl. Spread your legs,' he allegedly said.

The girl, who was returned to her friend's home, later revealed to a friend and her mother that she had been raped.

The driver 'strongly denies' the allegations against him and has been described by character references as a kind-hearted family man who respects women.

Court documents filed in the Brisbane Supreme Court show data taken from his phone place him on the exact route the victim alleged the assault occurred.

Seminal fluid has also been detected on the victim's underwear but not in the man's vehicle, which police noted had been 'recently cleaned'.

The man, who had been working up to five days a week as an Uber driver since January, is not allowed to work for the company or as a taxi driver as part of his bail conditions.

He has also been placed on a curfew, surrendered his passport and must report to police three times a week.

DALLAS - An Uber driver is under arrest after dragging a police officer at Dallas Love Field.

The officer was off-duty and working for the airport directing traffic Friday night. The officer said he was talking to 52-year-old Jeffrey Wilks about a traffic violation. That's when the driver sped off, dragging the officer about ten-feet.

‘It is not safe to allow your riders to ride with him’

A woman who says she was raped by an Uber driver is suing the ride-hail company for allegedly ignoring previous warnings about the driver’s violent history.

The victim, a post-graduate student from Kansas City referred to in court documents as “Jane Doe,” says she was raped by an Uber driver named Yahkhahnahn Ammi on January 28th, 2017. The incident was reported to the Kansas City Police Department, which has collected evidence and is currently investigating the matter. Ammi has not been arrested and was driving for Uber as recently as March 20th, 2017.

A spokesperson for Uber said the company had just received the complaint and declined to comment while the specifics were being reviewed. “What’s reported in the complaint is deeply troubling and something we take extremely seriously. We are reviewing the litigation,” the spokesperson said. She confirmed that Ammi had driven for Uber, and was deactivated in March. A spokesperson for the Kansas City Police Department did not immediately return a request for comment.

AMMI HAS NOT BEEN ARRESTED AND WAS DRIVING FOR UBER AS RECENTLY AS MARCH 20TH

Ammi is a convicted felon who served eight years in prison for first-degree murder, according to the suit. After leaving prison, he had a string of minor infractions and lawsuits filed against him. He began driving for Uber in December, 2016. On December 25th, several weeks before Doe was raped, Ammi is alleged to have “viciously assaulted” a woman he was residing with in St. Louis, Missouri.

The assault victim filed domestic abuse charges against Ammi; he was charged and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Meanwhile, the victim also submitted an incident report to Uber to warn the company about the danger posed by Ammi to riders. According to court documents, her report read: “Your driver YAHKHAHNAHN ‘Yah’ Ammi assaulted someone badly 12/25/16!! He hurt the woman badly! He has a warrant out for his arrest. He is a scam artist his real name is Perrie D. Gibson born 8/21/79 or 78 it is not safe to allow your riders to ride with him!!”

Image: Jane Doe v. Uber Technologies

Representatives from Uber spoke over the phone with the St. Louis victim, and claimed it was launching an internal investigation. The lawsuit contains screenshots of the response from Uber stating that the company “will be in contact with you as soon as possible regarding this matter.”

Image: Jane Doe v. Uber Technologies

The victim also posted images of the injuries she sustained from her assault by Ammi on social media, using his full name and warning others to avoid accepting rides from him. But despite her report and public allegations, Uber failed to follow up with the victim and Ammi was permitted to continue to drive for the ride-hail service. A spokesperson for Uber confirmed the receipt of the incident report from a third party, and said the company believes it was handled properly.

Several weeks later, the plaintiff was connected to Ammi through the Uber app for a ride to a university-sponsored event. During the trip, Ammi persuaded Doe to exchange contact information so he could provide her and her classmates a ride home. Hours later, Ammi gave an intoxicated Doe a ride home, and then gained access to her apartment by claiming he needed to use the restroom. After refusing to leave, Doe claims she was raped by Ammi.

“IT IS TRULY UNCONSCIONABLE THAT UBER WOULD PERMIT THIS DRIVER TO CONTINUE TO DRIVE.”

“It is shocking that Uber would hire someone convicted of attempted murder in the first place,” said Norman Siegel, an attorney representing the plaintiff. “But it is truly unconscionable that Uber would permit this driver to continue to drive for the company after Uber was expressly warned that he violently assaulted a woman and presented an immediate danger to Uber passengers.”

Uber frequently touts its commitment to safety in its promotional material. But after a recent lawsuit accusing the company of misrepresenting its safety standards, Uber is now barred from using certain language when marketing itself, including phrases like "safest ride on the road" and "gold standard in safety." It also agreed to pay $10 million after settling a California lawsuit over its misleading statements regarding driver background checks.

Uber has also resisted efforts to require it to fingerprint drivers. The company argues that requiring drivers to be fingerprinted as part of criminal background checks would hamper its on-boarding process, which they need to maintain at a brisk pace because driver turnover is so high.

Jane Doe’s lawsuit isn’t the first to accuse Uber of mishandling cases involving its drivers who are accused or convicted of rape and assault. The company is currently being sued by a woman who was raped by a driver in India after reports surfaced that a top executive at Uber obtained her medical records. The executive, Eric Alexander, was convinced the allegations were actually a sabotage effort by Uber’s top competitor in India, Ola. Alexander kept the records and showed them to several others at Uber, including then-CEO Travis Kalanick.

Alexander has since been forced out of the company. And last week, Kalanick became the latest to resign after months of nonstop scandals and controversies. The company has been roiling from a massive investigation into its toxic workplace that resulted in the review of hundreds of cases of inappropriate behavior and 20 terminations. The company says it is committed to improving relations with drivers and riders.

A woman escaped from an Uber ride in north Florida after the driver groped her, police said.

Edwin Ricci, 66, was arrested on Simple Battery charges for the alleged attack that happened on June 14 in Gainesville.

The woman was traveling in the Uber ride she purchased when she noticed the driver making the wrong turn. She was Facetiming with a friend when she told the driver he was going the wrong way, but Ricci allegedly told the victim "we are just taking a little ride," according to an arrest report.

That's when the driver noticed the woman was Facetiming and he turned the car and said "I hope he is not a jealous guy," a police report says. Ricci allegedly reached over and grabbed the woman's breasts, police said. The victim hit the driver's arm and yelled at him to stop before she jumped out the car and ran.

The woman's friend, who was on the Facetime call, saw and heard part of the attack, police said.

Ricci was arrested Monday at his attorney's office after he was identified by the victim from a six-person photo lineup.

A passenger who took an Uber from Oakland to Moraga was sexually battered by her driver near the end of the ride, police said Tuesday.

San Francisco resident Leonid Beker, 42, was arrested in San Francisco on Thursday, according to the Moraga Police Department. He was booked into the Contra Costa County jail in Martinez on suspicion of felony sexual battery before being released on bail later that day, said Moraga Police Chief Jon King.

“It’s an absolutely terrible thing to have a lady who is just trying to get a ride to her destination, and she’s victimized like this,” King said. “It’s absolutely

King said investigators are looking into whether Beker victimized other woman.

A spokesman for Uber said “what the rider reported is deeply troubling,” adding that Beker had been removed from the service.

Beker is accused of stopping the car soon after he and the victim reached Moraga, police said. He climbed into the backseat, where he assaulted the woman, police said.

Police were working with the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office on filing charges against Beker, King said.

A warrant was issued Tuesday afternoon, May 23, for the arrest of an Uber driver who UC Riverside police say sexually assaulted a female passenger near the UCR campus.

Jamaal Andrew Lee, 41, of Moreno Valley will face three felony charges when he is arrested, according to Riverside County Superior Court records: oral copulation by force or violence, assault with the intent to rape and false imprisonment.

Lee may be driving a white 2004 Ford Explorer with California license plate 6AOG427, UCR police said in a news release. Anyone who sees Lee is urged to call police.

In the wake of the attack, university officials are encouraging students who use ride-hailing services such as Uber to do so in groups.

The woman, who lives in a UCR apartment complex near campus, reported the assault at 2:47 a.m. May 14, according to a crime alert posted to the UCR Police Department website.

“UCPD suggests the following strategies when using these types of transportation services: When possible, utilize the service as a group. Let a trusted friend know where you are going and when you expect to return,” officials wrote in the alert.

The assault happened despite safety precautions that Uber says it takes, including conducting criminal background checks on its drivers and tracking drivers’ trips with GPS.

Uber spokesman Andrew Hasbun said Lee has been banned from working for the company.

“What the rider reported is appalling,” Hasbun said in an email.

Uber is one of several services in which freelance drivers set their own schedules and respond to requests for rides made through a smartphone app. These ride-sharing services face fewer regulations than traditional taxi companies.

The alleged victim in this month’s assault had arranged for a ride from an off-campus location to the UCR Plaza Apartments at 1020 N. Linden St., said the UCR statement. Police did not say where the assault took place.

“Once it was reported to us, UCPD issued a timely warning to the campus community detailing this incident. UCPD investigators have contacted Uber, who is cooperating with our requests for information on this driver,” the statement said.

How Uber screens drivers

Uber contracts with a third party to conduct criminal background checks on driver applicants, who are required to furnish their full name, date of birth, Social Security number, driver’s license number and a copy of their driver’s license.

Applicants are ineligible to become Uber drivers if they have had more than three minor moving violations in the previous three years; have driven on a suspended or revoked license in the past three years; or had a conviction for driving under the influence or any felony, violent crime, sex offense or child abuse or endangerment in the past seven years.

Would-be taxi drivers in California, unlike ride-hailing applicants, must be fingerprinted during background checks. Those prints, the taxi companies said in a lawsuit, make it easier to determine criminal records of applicants who lie about their names and backgrounds.

Uber officials have countered that their background checks are reliable.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of California taxi companies in 2015 and dismissed at their request in April 2017, accused Uber of false advertising for saying its rides are “safer than a taxi.”

When a driver accepts a request for a ride, the rider sees the driver’s first name, rating, photo and license plate number on the Uber phone app. That information can be checked against the driver who shows up. The app also will show the route, and the trips are tracked using GPS.

The website acknowledges some shortcomings.

“Accidents and incidents will always happen. And when it comes to screening, every system has its flaws. That’s partly because past behavior may not accurately predict how people will behave in the future, but also due to the fact that no system in the U.S has a one hundred percent accurate record of the past,” Uber’s website says.

SERDANG: A woman's ride home was not as safe as she thought it would have been when she was mugged by her Uber driver and another passenger on Monday night.

The 26-year-old booked her ride home to Puchong Jaya from Mid Valley through Uber, and claimed that there was another man sitting in the front passenger seat when she got into the vehicle at around 9.30pm Monday.

She said when they arrived at One Puchong business centre, the passenger pointed a knife at her and forced her to hand over her valuables.

After robbing her, the suspects left the victim by the side of the road where she was found by a passer-by who drove her to the police station to lodge a report.

The passer-by also related the woman's ordeal on Facebook and said that she was terrified and in tears when he approached her.

Serdang Deputy OCPD Supt Lee Wai Leong confirmed the incident.

"We have obtained information on the suspect and driver and are tracing them," he said.

Uber said it was unable to comment on the case as it was an ongoing investigation.

"We are cooperating with the authorities in their investigation and would like to assure the public that Uber takes safety very seriously," it said.